


A Wolf in Wolf's Clothing

by FoiblePNoteworthy



Series: The Non-Existent Twin [5]
Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Comedy, Crack, Crack Treated Seriously, Episode: s02e17 Lake Laogai, Gen, Identity Porn, and spent the whole story staring at Zuko's ass, graphic flirting, is that a thing i need to warn people about?, jet wasn't invited but he showed up, this is so dumb, toph is awesome, zuko pretends to be his own twin and it works
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-23
Updated: 2021-01-03
Packaged: 2021-02-23 12:36:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 9,719
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23278216
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FoiblePNoteworthy/pseuds/FoiblePNoteworthy
Summary: “…Yeah, I have two uncles,” Zuko said. “Iroh and Mushi.”“You never told me about another Uncle!”“I told you about Uncle Mushi when I told you about Kuzon and… Bob.”Fuck."Who?"***Or: Zuko convinces the gaang he's his own twin brother part 5 - He has two more twin brothers and his uncle also has a twin. Zuko just wants to see what he can get away with, now.(Feat. a thirsty Jet; Toph's lie-detector skills and personality.)
Relationships: Aang & Zuko (Avatar), Iroh & Zuko (Avatar), Toph Beifong & Zuko
Series: The Non-Existent Twin [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1573438
Comments: 397
Kudos: 2082
Collections: Good_or_Decent_Zuko_With_a_dash_of_Iroh_Azula_Gaang





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> It's baaaaaaack!!!  
> Jet wasn't invited and he wasn't meant to be in this story but he's here. I have always loved Jet because of his potential as a character, even if I feel that it wasn't fully capitalised on in the show, but I am ignoring all of that and writing that creepy stalker dude who keeps thirsting after Zuko because I feel like hitting him with a brick today. Just a heads up to anyone who's read my other stuff about Jet, where he's hella deep and nice, because I cba with that today.

“So I was thinking about names for my new tea shop,” Iroh said to Zuko as he entered. “How about: The Jasmine Dragon?”

Zuko pulled a poster from his pocket, thrusting it under Iroh’s chin. “The Avatar is in Ba Sing Se,” he said, his tone unreadable, “And he’s lost his bison.”

Iroh looked at his nephew, already trying to figure out exactly what Zuko might be planning. Zuko was something of an expert at finding the Avatar and his allies at this stage, it wouldn’t be difficult for him to find the bison, or the Avatar himself, who would be unable to run away without his bison by his side.

But what did Zuko want? What stance did Iroh need to take here? Should he encourage his nephew to seek out his friend, or try to keep him away from his nemesis?

“I… see,” Iroh said, watching Zuko closely, lacking the information necessary to guess at his intentions and commit to a side in whatever argument was coming up.

When his nephew said nothing, Iroh dared to ask, “What do you intend to do, Nephew?”

Zuko hesitated. “A beast of that size would be difficult to control and hide – the Dai Li are likely involved here. They would need some method to keep the Avatar from disrupting order here.”

“He does have a habit of shaking things up,” Iroh said with a chuckle, no further forwards.

“The Dai Li are all over the place; I would be able to capture one and make the tell me where they’re keeping the bison-” so it was the bison itself and not the Avatar his nephew sought “-and from there I could break in and find it. Everyone in the city is terrified of the Dai Li-”

“For good reason,” Iroh couldn’t help but interject.

Zuko nodded but didn’t halt in his planning. “-So their security is likely somewhat lax – they’re not expecting anyone to attack them.”

“The mightiest lion-moose is always the least cautious,” Iroh agreed.

Zuko gave him a dirty look but didn’t complain, for once. Maybe he had actually understood that proverb.

“So you agree that I could do it,” Zuko said.

Iroh was both confused and pleased that his nephew had come to ask his advice and check that he wasn’t overreaching himself. Or, at least, he wished he could be – there was definitely more to this. Zuko had never asked him for advice about his missions before, and he wasn’t about to start now.

“I am glad that you have chosen to speak to me about your plans, nephew,” Iroh said. “And I am certain that everything you have described is within your range of skills. But I have a feeling that there is more you wish to ask me.”

He still had no idea whether his nephew planned to attack or befriend the Avatar, or how sincere it would be should he choose the latter.

For a moment, Zuko appeared to be frozen in indecision. Then: “You aren’t angry that I want to bring the Avatar into our lives? We are in danger for as long as we are in Ba Sing Se, and talking with him at all would only risk our covers – even if he doesn’t figure us out, he might reveal that we’re Fire Nation. And he has no reason to trust you, beyond my word.” Iroh hid a grin – so Zuko was planning to befriend the Avatar, and had no immediate plans to deliver him to his father.

Zuko continued. “We could lose your new tea shop - we could lose everything, if we’re not extremely careful. I just… you’re okay with me doing this?”

Was Zuko actually… thinking about the consequences of his actions and being considerate to Iroh’s wants instead of charging headlong into a fight without a plan to get out again?

Iroh felt he might cry.

He pulled Zuko into a hug, ignoring his protesting flailing, and said, “It doesn’t matter if he reveals us, his word holds enough sway to protect us. The Avatar would only prove a powerful ally to us, for as long as you want him to be.”

Zuko nodded into his shoulder, his flailing dying down as he exhausted himself, as always.

“Did you happen to discover which kinds of tea the Avatar and his friends prefer?” Iroh asked. “I shall have to keep them stocked at out new tea shop.”

Zuko pulled out of his shoulder with a soft expression and started talking about his friend.

***

Zuko wasn’t the only person beneath Lake Laogai - and he wasn’t just talking about the Dai Li. The clashing of weaponry rang through the walls, as did the rumbling of Earthbending. A _lot_ of Earthbending. Whoever was here, they were powerful enough to give the Dai Li hassle.

Combine that with how Appa was agitated, struggling towards the sounds of conflict…

It had to be the Avatar.

Well, that messed up Zuko’s plan to heroically appear at their home on the back of their missing bison, kind-faced and contrite about upsetting Aang before, pushing through his anger at them to save his beloved friend, same as he had done many times before.

Although… appearing in the middle of a fight to rescue them has always been the Blue Spirit’s style.

***

Long Feng smirked at the unlikely pair before him. “Jet,” he said, “The Earth King has invited you to Lake Laogai.”

Jet froze, tension falling from his shoulders. “I am honoured to accept his invitation.”

He turned and struck at Aang.

Aang yelped, jumping backwards and trying to reason with Jet, who wouldn’t – _couldn’t_ – listen. He had to get to Long Feng, he had to stop him, but he’d have to hurt Jet to do it, and he just _couldn’t_. Jet had been a bad guy in the past, but he was trying to help Aang, and it just wouldn’t be fair if something happened to him because of Aang.

It didn’t help that Jet was a very dangerous opponent.

It _did_ help that Appa was currently crashing through the walls, catching Jet in his mouth and keeping him from fighting.

It helped even more when a familiar figure in black and blue leapt from Appa’s back to attack Long Feng.

***

A knock to the head and a bath in bison slobber seemed to be the quickest cure for brainwashing. Jet wasn’t entirely sure it was worth it, but he had caused way too much trouble already to risk complaining about it.

The two groups and mysterious sexy stranger had all ended up at the Avatar’s house, taking a well-deserved break after spending night and day taking down Long Feng and convincing the Earth King that the war was real.

 _How did he not know about the war?_ Jet knew the Dai Li had been supressing the information, but it had been a century since it started and the city was full of refugees. He couldn’t help but feel a distinct lack of loyalty towards his King, but managed to push the anger aside with a few deep breaths and the memory of their success.

Jet was more than happy to turn his thoughts to sexy stranger (was he the _real_ Blue Spirit?) with his twin swords and tight-fitting suit and awesome lifesaving fighting skills.

As was the Avatar, unfortunately. He’d spent most of the day alternating between hiding at the other end of the room and clinging to the guy’s side in a way that Jet refused to be jealous of because the kid was twelve and he needed to get his mind out of the gutter for five minutes, never mind that the dude had got wet when they broke through the lake and Jet had seen his abs through his tunic and-

This was fine. He could do this; Jet was the smoothest guy this side of anywhere.

He looked over to see the guy who may or may not be _The_ Blue Spirit stretching and felt a flush creeping up his neck. He so could not do this. He couldn’t believe he was feeling like this – especially when he really should have learned his lesson about mysterious swordsmen after what happened with the hot-angsty-scar-swordsman, Li.

“Are you, like, the _actual_ Blue Spirit?” he blurted at the guy like a complete tool.

Tall, dark and hopefully-dual-wielding-in-more-ways-than-one _(wink wink)_ turned and looked at him with a tilt of his head, like he thought Jet was an idiot. Which was justified.

“I mean,” Jet tried to explain, “The guy who broke Aang out of Fire Nation prison and rescued all of them from their soldiers all the time and has that abso-fucking-lutely huge bounty on his head. Is that you?”

Actual sin in human form regarded him for a long moment, before nodding.

Dear sweet spirits it was _actually him_. Jet stood absolutely no chance.

Aang flitted over to the tall drink of water and stood on his tip toes to whisper in his ear.

 _The Blue Spirit, world-saving swordsman extraordinaire,_ nodded again, turning to leave the room with Aang, his friends following behind them.

 _I hate to see you leave_ , Jet couldn’t help but think, _but I love to watch you go._

***

The second Li pulled his mask off, Aang felt the weight of guilt slam back down onto his shoulders. He’d never quite forgiven himself for not telling Li about Zuko’s death properly – he had no right to, not when Li hadn’t forgiven him – and now Li was back, saving his life again _and_ rescuing Appa in one fell swoop, when it was _Aang_ who needed to make some grand gesture towards him.

“I’m so sorry, Li,” Aang exploded, wrapping himself around the taller boy in apology. “I’m so sorry about Zuko, and everything that happened, and I’m sorry we just left you to travel on your own and we left you with your evil sister and-”

Gentle hands rubbed at his shoulders, carefully pulling him closer into the hug. “It’s okay, Aang. Things with me and Zuko have always been complicated, and your relationship with him… I know you were never going to be friends with Zuko, and I know you never wanted to hurt me.”

“Never!” Aang pulled back to look at Li, to reassure himself with his presence. “I wasn’t trying to be mean or anything, I promise, I just wasn’t thinking and I know that’s no excuse-”

“I’m not angry with you, Aang,” said the soft rasp, hands still soothing his shoulders. “I was… feeling lot of feelings back then and I shouted at you and that wasn’t fair on you - but none of what happened was your fault.”

Aang’s hands began to shake where they were fisted in Li’s soft sneaky-fighting clothes.

“I know you’ve always run off after helping us,” Aang said, “But this time… will you stay?”

Li stiffened in his hold. “I am… _honoured_ … by your offer,” he half-joked, bringing out his brother’s favourite word, “But I can’t.”

Aang tried desperately not to let his disappointment show.

“I won’t be living too far away, though.” He tilted Aang’s chin up to look at him, offering him one of his soft expressions. “Uncle managed to get us a tea shop and apartment in the upper ring.”

“That’s so cool!” Aang exclaimed. Then frowned. “I didn’t know you had another uncle.”

***

Why had Zuko expected things to keep going well? He’d managed to break into the Dai Li headquarters to rescue that stupid (extremely fluffy) bison; he’d met the _Earth King_ and basically spent the day in his company without anyone making him take his mask off and reveal his identity to people who would know better than to believe his story about twin brothers; he’d managed to soothe the Avatar’s guilt about killing him so he would stop making those sad faces and feeling guilty about something he never actually did _(and that really needs to stop being funny; it’s so not fair on Aang)._

He’d thought the worst thing to contend with was the fact that _Jet_ of all people was somehow here (again) and that he had a crush on him (again) - and even that was becoming more fun than annoying.

_(The look on his face when he realises…)_

But now Zuko had to explain that his evil Uncle was never actually evil or was no longer evil or was actually his Uncle’s twin brother and that one might actually work, _damnit this is so stupid._

He’d have to break some of his rules to get this lie to work – the rules being to always be as honest as he actually could, and to be vague when he couldn’t be honest, to make it easier to keep his lies straight (and not for any other reason) – but it would definitely work.

He wouldn’t have time to plan, however, he’d taken too long just figuring out which lie to tell. If the worst came to the worst, he could tell the truth but promise Uncle was trustworthy, but he’d much prefer for them to trust Uncle. He didn’t deserve to be treated with suspicion

“…Yeah, I have two uncles,” he said. “Iroh and Mushi.” _Fuck, give details – make them two completely separate people._ “Mushi’s been living in Ba Sing Se since the Siege.” _So there’s no way you could have ever met Mushi, yes, that would work._

“Your Uncle was involved in the _Siege_?”

_Why the fuck did I mention the Siege?_

“He didn’t agree with it so he snuck into the city to set up a tea shop,” Zuko said, trying to think of something to distract Aang from reminders of his family’s crimes, and of a way to explain that his Uncles were twins without it seeming too forced or ridiculous. “I told you all of this ages ago.”

“You never told me about another Uncle!”

“I told you about Uncle Mushi when I told you about Kuzon and… Bob.”

 _What the fuck kind of name is_ Bob?

“Who?”

Zuko felt a bead of sweat drip down his back. He forced an offended tone. “My twin brothers!”

“ _Zuko_ is your twin brother!” Sokka exclaimed from a corner of the room, now too confused to continue as a spectator.

“I’m not sure that _is_ is the right tense, here,” Zuko said. “And Kuzon and Bob are my _other_ twin brothers.”

“So, you mean quadruplets,” Katara interjected.

“Yes, fine, but since none of us officially exist we pretend there’re only two of us if we can,” he rubbed at his neck in false embarrassment. “But I definitely told Aang about them.”

He turned to look Aang straight in the face. “Kuzon helped me get my swords, since he was a non-bender,” he said, thinking back to what he’d said about Zuko to attach as much truth to this _absolute mess_ as it could hold, “And Bobbatha set my turtleducks on fire!”

“You said that was Zuko!”

“You thought I was talking about _Zuko_ this whole time!”

(“Is no one going to say anything about the name _Bobbatha?”_ Sokka asked the room, receiving no reply. Zuko silently agreed with him, and cursed his inability to lie on the spot.)

“I can’t believe you!” Zuko yelled, completely believing Aang, because he was right. “You’ve met Kuzon!”

Aang threw his hands up in the air in total confusion. “When did I meet Kuzon?”

(New plan: Have an explanation ready _before_ throwing out more garbage.)

_Well, if I’m going to talk complete and utter garbage, I might as well have fun with it._

“When he attacked Zhao during the Siege of the North Pole and you gave him waterbending?”

Katara slammed her hands on the wall, eyes wide. _“Aang what?”_

Zuko turned to Katara, gesturing to Aang. “He gave Kuzon waterbending when he was bonded with the Ocean Spirit. It was a gift for fighting Zhao, since Kuzon was a non-bender.”

Zuko frowned, turning away for a moment, before turning back with a dramatic flourish, “Hang on, Mushi was there too!”

“That old man was Mushi?” Sokka cried. “But he looked just like the creepy Uncle who was always following Zuko around!”

“Well, duh,” Zuko was so far past trying to say anything true at this point. This was going to be a nightmare to figure out later – he could only hope it was just as confusing for the others. If no one knew what he’d been talking about he could get away with bluffing it out. Probably. He decided to just have fun with it and desperately hope it was too messy for them to remember anything properly, in case he contradicted himself later. “They’re twins!”

 _“They’re twins too?”_ the group practically chorused in confusion and dismay.

“It runs in the family!” Zuko yelled, secretly very much enjoying himself with his newfound decision to speak entirely in nonsense and revel, in their complete confusion. “I’ve said all of this before!”

(He had not, in fact, said any of this before.)

“Wait, you said Mushi had been here since the Siege of Ba Sing Se,” said the little earthbender in the corner, a grin poking out of one side of her face, “But then you said he was there in the North Pole?”

Zuko blinked at the glaringly stupid hole in his story. “Well, Uncle said he was there at least, to help Kuzon. I wasn’t there to confirm.”

“He was working with Zhao,” Sokka accused.

“He,” Zuko forced himself not to stumble, even as he scrambled to explain, “was undercover, pretending to be Uncle Iroh.”

“Then where was Iroh?” the little earthbender asked, uninvested enough in the conversation to simply sit back and watch – ah, listen to - the chaos.

The group looked at him expectantly.

“Okay, fine,” Zuko said, even though nothing was okay or fine, “I’ll be honest here: I don’t know the full story about what went down at the North Pole. All I know is that one of my uncles is dead and one of my uncles is here with me, and the one with me is claiming to be Uncle Mushi. Either way, I trust him.”

“Even though you literally don’t know who he is.”

“He is made up entirely of tea and proverbs and irritating hugs. Uncle’s a good guy, whichever one he is.”

The group looked like they still wanted to object.

“Just leave it alone, okay? He’s not your enemy and I love him and trust him and need him and you’re all just going to have to deal with that.”

The little earthbender – Zuko needed to find out her name - nodded from her corner. “So where’s Kuzon just now?” she asked, offering Zuko a much-needed change of subject.

He offered a shrug. “He said something about swamp-benders? I figure the guys at the North Pole aren’t too fond of him, being a Fire Prince and all, and he _does_ need a teacher.”

She nodded, sending out a gentle wave of earth with a tap of her foot when the others opened their mouths to keep questioning him. “Leave off the guy,” she said. “He’s a friend and he’s had a long day and he’s telling the truth besides.”

Zuko blinked, a chill running down his spine. “You can tell?”

She grinned, wolf-shark teeth flashing. “I can feel vibrations in the earth, even tiny things you _seeing-people_ can’t pick up on. Did you know people’s heartbeats change when they lie?”

Zuko swallowed.

“Also when they panic,” she smirked. “Or anything like that really, it’s extremely useful.”

“Must be,” he rasped.

“And since you’re telling the truth and really don’t need an interrogation when we should be trying to get some rest, we should leave you alone - right, guys?” She turned her head, directing the last part at their friends.

The trio of interrogators shifted guiltily.

“I’m going to walk Li home,” she announced, taking a hold of his sleeve and dragging him out of the room, almost too quickly for him to replace his mask before (ugh) Jet could see him and try to kill him (again) instead of just awkwardly crushing on him (again).

Outside, at a safe distance from the others, he asked, “Why are you walking me home?”

“So I know where you live.”

That was fair. She knew he was a lying scumbag who’d made all of that up for absolutely no reason, so if she wanted to kill him in his sleep instead of letting the others do it that was fine.

“I never caught your name before?”

“Toph.”

It suited her.

The walked in silence, neither of them acknowledging the elephant-mouse in the room. Zuko didn’t dare to in case he revealed a little too much – in case she didn’t know, somehow, that he’d been speaking entirely in garbage for the last five minutes. Five months.

He’d been cautious enough with his phrasing at the start that she might not know he was actually Zuko, but everything to do with his other twins _(why did he make everything so ridiculous?)_ and everything to do with _Uncle_ was a lie and she’d know – what was she going to do? What if she hurt Uncle? He saw her fighting today; he knew he stood no chance against her. What if-

“Geez, calm down Sneaky, your heart’s about to jump out of your chest,” Toph said, mischief layering her tone, rather than anger. “It’s not like I know you were speaking the most beautifully terrible garbage I‘ve ever heard five minutes ago.”

So she knew. This was… not great.

“If I had to guess,” she said, “ Your Uncle actually _is_ the dude who worked with your evil brother but you just don’t want the others to know?”

“Um. Basically?”

“And Kuzon and Bobbatha?”

Zuko couldn’t help but snort. Bobbatha was such a stupid name.

“Yeah, that’s what I thought.” She punched him in the side. “Your story was terrible and all the layers of it were terrible but they believed you. My friends are such dumbasses.”

“Well… yeah,” he wanted to defend his long-time friends/adversaries, but… “The fact that they believe me about the twin thing at _all_ is so dumb.”

“So dumb. Seeing the same person in two places at once shouldn’t prove that twins exist.”

If she wanted to assume they’d at least had that level of proof he wasn’t about to contradict her.

“All I did was save their lives a couple of times,” he said instead, somewhat awed that she knew about _some_ of the lies but hadn’t picked up on the others.

“Idiots.”

Zuko grinned at the mini menace. Ignoring the part where she knew all of his secrets and could instantly destroy him if she so desired, he found he quite liked her. She reminded him of Azula, in a way – she was dangerous and funny and entirely capable of killing a hundred men, but he still felt oddly protective.

“So that’s why you didn’t tell them?”

She stopped walking and turned to face him, taking one of his hands firmly in both of hers. “I’m gonna make a pact with you,” she said, not offering him any choice in the matter. “You’re gonna keep feeding them the dumbest stories you can come up with, and I’ll back you up if they ever get suspicious.”

This would be so fucking useful. How was this so easy? He had the group’s lie detector actively covering his lies for him as long as he made them terrible.

“This is going to be so much fun,” he found himself saying, taking her hands together with his free one.

She grinned that wolf-shark grin, and Zuko found himself returning it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> kudos comment subscribe to the main series please and thank you
> 
> (hello to all my regulars I see you and I love you and I'm really bad at replying to comments so I am sorry but I promise I cherish you)
> 
> I wrote this in like one sitting Jesus christ  
> there were some parts of this that I wasn't hella happy with but oh well. i just want them to be in ba sing se now without having to put effort in. I'll probably give it a huge overhaul a few months down the line but this'll do for now.
> 
> I might end up putting the next part up as a second chapter here instead of as its own bit, depending on what it is - if it's just some fluffy gaang bonding it'll probe go here, but if I actually get on with there plot it'll be its own piece, I think.
> 
> Credit for the name Bob goes to a bunch of commenters on part 3 (it was a popular suggestion) - but Bobbatha, in particular, goes to a guest named I'm dead.
> 
> Tumblr, in which I draw stuff and occasionally talk about my writing: https://www.tumblr.com/blog/foiblepnoteworthy


	2. Hitting (on?) Jet

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> bruh i just want to fuck with jet okay?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i feel like i should warn for... graphic flirting? is that a thing? y'all know what jet is like but still. its still safe for work but if you really hate anything even mildly flirty for whatever reason... idk. take caution  
> (I love that I warn for flirting but not for like... murder. oh well)
> 
> this accomplished exactly nothing that I wanted to do but it was fun to write so I figure y'all won't mind a delay on the plot actually showing up.

Jet had caught glimpses of the Blue Spirit on rooftops; leaping across perilous gaps with nothing but his skill and his guts to keep him alive. Like a tiger-dog spotting a squirrel-rat, Jet gave chase every time, sometimes reacting before he’d processed what he’d seen, but he always came up empty.

He’d seen the Spirit’s perfect form far too many times for it to be a coincidence – the guy was teasing him, he wanted Jet to find him and catch him. He wanted Jet to work for it, to prove himself. He just had to find him once, he knew it instinctively, and the guy would be his.

He’d tried looking for him through other means, of course, but the Avatar and his friends were less than forthcoming about how to find him – but he knew they knew where he was, and that was all he needed.

They kept sneaking off somewhere, somewhere that they didn’t want him to know about. Even if the Blue Spirit wasn’t there, something interesting had to be.

The only problem was following them there. They weren’t exactly happy to see him (it’s not like he _saved their bison_ or anything, nope, not him, they don’t _owe_ him) and kicked him out more often than they let him stick around.

It took a few days of staking out their house from the opposite rooftop (which brought back uncomfortable memories of following Li, the hot firebender from the ferry, who he’d been unable to find and reveal when he finally had a minute to go looking), but he managed to catch a group heading out – Sokka and Katara, no freaky psychic earthbenders in sight. Perfect.

He followed them from rooftop to rooftop, ducking out of sight whenever they happened to look his way. It was a surprisingly short walk before they reached a… tea shop? The Jasmine Dragon, not open yet. The pair walked in without knocking.

This had to be the place they were sneaking off to. The only question was _why_.

(The Blue Spirit could be hiding there. His blood burned at the thought.)

Jet dropped to the ground. He slicked a hand through his hair, adjusted his wheat stem, brushed some rooftop dirt from his clothes, and sauntered in, smirk firmly in place.

(Maybe he should have scouted this place out beforehand, but he couldn’t stop thinking about the Blue Spirit. What if he was here?)

“Jet!” Katara yelped. “What are you doing here? This place isn’t open; you can’t just come barging in!”

“Just wanted to see what all the fuss was about,” Jet drawled. “You guys sneak out here all the time; you can’t blame me for wondering.”

“You can’t just-”

“It is alright,” came a disgustingly familiar voice from the back room. “The more the merrier.”

Jet’s eyes widened. His swords were in his hands without conscious thought. “Firebender!”

“Wait – you guys know each other?” asked Sokka, with none of the needed urgency.

“We met on the ferry,” Mushi came into the front room, cradling a teapot. “He and my nephew went on a delightful crime date together. Then the poor boy spotted me firebending my tea and came to some upsetting but understandable conclusions.”

“Did he attack you?” asked the little earthbender. (When did she get here?)

“He attacked my nephew – or rather, my nephew came to my defence.”

“Li does have a habit of doing that.” Aang poked his head out from around the corner. He must have been there already then, probably with the earthbender.

Hang on, what did he just say? What are they all saying?

“He’s a firebender! Why aren’t you…” he watched their unimpressed expressions. “What?”

“Uncle’s our friend,” The earthbender said. “It doesn’t matter that he’s a firebender.”

“Yeah!” Aang agreed. “It just means we have even more people who could teach me firebending.”

Jet scowled. “You really think you can _trust_ him.”

Sokka shrugged. “Li trusts him. That’s good enough for me.”

“Li’s a firebender!”

“You say that like you have any evidence,” Li came out of the backroom, bearing a tray of teacups and a scowl. (Damn, he hadn’t changed a bit, all hard-edged emotion and muscle.) “For all you know, I just happen to have an uncle who can firebend, entirely without my knowledge. And yet _I’m_ the one you tried to get arrested.”

“I was trying to get _both of you_ arrested!”

“I am grateful to be included,” Mushi said, his face carefully neutral. “I do like to know my nephew’s friends.”

Jet felt a throbbing begin in his temples; an ache settled at the base of his skull, just a little to the left.

“If it makes you feel any better,” Li said, face softening to be almost reassuring (if it wasn’t coming from a scummy, jacked, evil, sexy, Fire Nation piece of ~~ass~~ shit), “The Blue Spirit trusts me too. I know you’ve heard of him.”

What? No.

_What?_

_…Nooo._

Jet sneered, hoping it would cover for his slack-jawed expression (it did not), “You expect me to believe that you two are _friends_?”

Li smirked in that way that would have made a weaker man flush. Jet had forgotten that smirk, somehow; and it struck him full force, just how pretty Li is.

He made his way over to Jet with sensually slow steps, reminding him of the muscle, of the _power_ , in those legs. Jet’s own traitorous limbs felt a little like jelly.

Li stepped a little too close to him, breathing the same air, and said, voice lowered for the intimate space and rasping as it always was, “The Blue Spirit and I are a little more than _friends_.”

Jet flinched at the hot flash that came from those words, at the vivid mental image those words inspired. His body apparently didn’t get the memo that this guy was out to kill everybody he cared about.

(Well, maybe not; he was friends with the Avatar after all.)

The Avatar’s trust didn’t really help the guy – he was friends with _Jet_ after all. The Blue Spirit, however…

And if Li and the Blue Spirit were… like _that_ … would they be willing to share?

Jet swallowed audibly.

“I’m sure I could introduce you if you want to…” Li bit his lip, and Jet had to physically restrain himself from leaning forwards and biting it himself, “…get to know him better. I always have a… _good time_ with him.”

“I – uh, yeah, that would be,” Jet lost control of his words - a first for him. “I’d like that.”

***

Settled in a booth, watching the whole affair, Sokka was having the time of his life. The sight of Li fucking with Jet via seduction was more than enough to make up for the confusing emotions brought up by the sight of _Zuko_ being _sexy_.

(It was unfair to Li to think of him that way, but he couldn’t deny that Li looked _exactly_ like his brother.)

(It was unfair to someone (possibly Sokka himself) that thinking of him as _Zuko_ brought up feelings that had been strictly reserved for girls in the past, which weren’t half as prominent when he thought of him as being _Li._

He was not, in any way, willing to analyse that.)

But watching Jet, of all people, getting a crush on the same person twice – getting a crush on a _Fire Prince_ twice – was a balm to some part of his soul he hadn’t known needed it. He’d had no idea that Li had such a sense of humour - more unfair comparisons with Zuko, he knew. He’d barely interacted with Li outside of fighting with him as the Blue Spirit, and kept superimposing his meetings with Zuko on top of what he knew about his new/old friend.

He needed to spend more time with Li to shake the ghost of Zuko. It had been over a week since they’d found him again (or rather, he’d found them), and he still knew next to nothing about the guy. (The snippets of stories from Aang didn’t count. Aang had clearly forgotten everything; considering that he didn’t even know about Kuzon and Bob and Mushi.)

His eye caught on the swords at his side. Sokka had seen him an action a hundred times – Li sure knew how to make a blade feel special. Sokka bet he’d be willing to share that skill.

***

Most of the time, being blind didn’t matter too much. It was irritating when sighted people forgot she couldn’t read or understand colour (seriously, how did that even work?) or see anything on the back of a bison; but the entertainment she got from seeing things they couldn’t always make up for it.

Example: The looks her friends exchanged over her head were annoying – she knew there were dozens of layers of nuance that she could never understand there, but the _thud thud thud_ of Jet’s heartbeat was a delight no one else was privy to.

She sidled over to Katara. “There any sighted details I’m missing out on?”

Katara’s words were rounded out, curled around a smile too broad to stop, “I’ll trade you.”

Toph nodded, giving her own grin.

“Jet’s staring at Li like he wants to eat him. Li’s got his eyelids half-lowered,” _what?_ “It looks really flirty, okay, and Jet – fuck he’s completely red. Looks like he’s drunk.”

“He’s red?”

“Blushing – blood’s running to his face from emotions I don’t want to think about in association with him, and it changes his skin colour. Thing is: Jet’s skin’s pretty dark, he needs to blush a lot before you can see it. He’s almost glowing.”

Toph resisted the desire to cackle. Jet seemed to have forgotten that the rest of them were there as soon as Li sauntered in, swaying like someone had removed all the bones in his legs and replaced them with jelly.

“Does he have a bo-”

“I swear to La, Toph, if you finish that sentence…”

***

“His heart is trying to jump out his chest,” Toph offered her instead. She seemed happy enough with Katara’s horrified reaction not to bother following it up. It was probably (hopefully, she’s twelve, after all) all she’d wanted in the first place. “It’s kinda freaking me out, to be honest.”

“Shouldn’t we do something?” Aang asked, joining their little huddle.

“Absolutely not,” Toph said. Katara nodded, half her attention caught on the way Jet wheezed at Li’s suddenly missing sleeves (how did he even _do_ that?).

“But… this is really unfair on Jet.”

Sokka interjected from over her shoulder (and when did he come over?), “It’s not unfair: he deserves something like this. All my petty revenge plans boiled down to getting Toph to throw rocks at him.” _Sometimes, the best plans are the simplest ones._ Katara found the mental image soothing.

Sokka continued: “This is far more elegant.”

“I am entirely willing to throw rocks at him.”

“I know that and I love you for it - but you can’t deny that _this_ is a masterpiece.”

(Li was touching Jet’s arm, almost innocently. “Would you like to, ah, _spar_ with me sometime?”

Jet’s eyes were bugging out of his head.)

“I’m really tempted now.”

“Leave it for the moment, Toph,” Katara said. “Watching him get pummelled by emotions is personally very cathartic.”

Li caught their collective gaze over Jet’s shoulder. From Jet’s perspective, he was probably just gazing off into the middle distance, the set of his jaw turning the stare into a heart-stopping smoulder. 

(It was disturbing having Zuko’s face look at them like that.)

But it looked like the performance was wrapping up. Li let his hand linger on Jet’s arm as he walked around him, headed for the exit. “Don’t be a stranger, okay?” he winked and walked with those strange loping steps, keeping Jet’s eye firmly on him as he left. He glanced back, almost regretful that he had to leave, his expression open, good eye wide with emotion.

Then he was gone.

(Jet, shaking slightly, curled up in the corner, alone with his existential crisis. He wheezed.)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> kudos comment subscribe cus there's gonna be another chapter where zuko and the gaang actually hang out (that's what was meant to happen here but I got distracted)
> 
> (hello again, my lovely regulars. How have you been? *blows kisses from 6ft away*)
> 
> this was meant to be one scene in a bigger thing but it kept going on so yeah. obviously this arc isn't finished yet, as jet doesn't know shit, but idk if I should keep him around when the plot shows up or wrap this up in the next chapter. thoughts?


	3. Connections and Kuzon

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *glances at clock* yeah i know. please take it

Sparring with Li was either the best idea Sokka had ever had, or the worst.

Sokka was well aware that he had plenty to learn about swordplay, but he knew enough to know that Li was a step above the standard. And he was – and this cannot be overlooked – _insane._

Insane in the sort of way that meant _hey was anyone going to tell me Li was a firebender? No? What about telling me that it was possible to set your swords on fire?_

Li did not seem to think he had done anything unusual. Li did not seem to notice how Sokka’s heart leapt into his throat seeing him so close to firebending, even though it was his own. Li did not seem to notice how much he looked like his brother when viewed through a flame.

(Sokka was _never_ going to tell him that.)

Most luckily of all, Li did not seem to notice how Sokka flushed whenever he pinned him with a sword at his throat. He told himself it was a strange reflex leftover from sparring with Suki ad carefully tucked away any other feelings into a box and then threw the box into the ocean, possibly to be retrieved when the war was over but not a second before because he _did not have time to think about ~~Zuko~~ Li like that._

(He was not, under any circumstances, going to allow himself to have anything in common with _Jet_ , and that included mooning over Li like Aang over Katara when she wasn’t looking.)

Thinking of Aang, though…

“Does Aang know you're a firebender?”

Li flinched, nearly dropping his drink into the fountain they were resting against. His hair was plastered to his head from dunking his head under earlier, his skin still shiny. He was sitting so close-

“He knows I don’t like to practise it. And that I’m not particularly good at it.”

_Focus, Sokka._

He blinked. “I’ve never heard of someone bending with steel before. And,” he added, “I wouldn’t have thought you had any problems with practising it, considering.” He nodded at his swords.

Li shook his head. “If I was a halfway decent bender I wouldn’t have to use my swords at all. They are an extension of me just as my fire _should be_ , but isn’t.” He shrugged. “Fire just doesn’t feel as natural in my hands as my swords.”

“So you can bend with your swords.”

“So I can bend with my swords.”

“ _So_ you can work around having a problem with your fire and still use it!” Sokka held up one waggling finger to accentuate his point. “ _And_ I bet you’d surprise any opponent who came against you with that little trick. Most people would expect an armsman to be a non-bender.”

Li squinted at him, his usual softness missing. Sokka carefully hid his flinch at seeing Zuko inches from him and kept his gaze on Li’s hairline.

“I-” his voice cracked, as though the discussion was anything more than a pragmatic and tactical discussion between two close allies. He wouldn’t meet Sokka’s eyes, choosing instead to look at his hands. “I’m not good enough to teach.”

Sokka shrugged. “We’re pretty desperate, and your Uncle won’t help us – which, by the way, is another tally in the ‘Iroh’ column – but our list of trustworthy firebenders isn’t exactly lengthy.”

Li looked away; chose to sip at his drink rather than reply.

Sokka dared to put his hand on his shoulder. “Just think about it, okay? We won’t force you.”

Li took a moment, then turned to him with a smirk that Sokka _could really do without seeing, thanks_. “I think we’ve proven this morning that you couldn’t.”

Sokka did not squawk, leaping to his feet and pulling out his practise sword again. “Is _that_ how it is?”

_“Li~i!”_

Li gave Sokka an apologetic smile and nodded towards Katara. “I promised I’d help her with the shopping.”

“Shopping? But we were-”

“You two have been sparring for hours!” Katara cut in without permission, wrapping an arm around one of Li’s. “Stop hogging Li.”

She stuck her nose in the air and turned away, pulling Li along behind her. Steam curled from his shoulders as he bent away the water from the fountain. It didn’t seem to take any concentration.

Sokka snorted.

 _‘Not particularly good at it’_ _my ass._

 _~~(His ass.)~~ _ ~~~~

He flushed and forced himself to look away from Li’s damp and retreating back.

***

“These potatochokes and those carronions would be good for a stew-”

“Yes but Sokka will complain if there’s not any meat and that would have to be added first and with _Aang_ -”

“Cooking two pots at the same time wouldn’t be any extra effort-”

“Not counting the washing up-”

“Tell Aang it’s waterbending training?”

Katara laughed. “I’ve used that one too many times before I’m afraid.”

Li gave her an approving smirk, before his expression softened, “I don’t expect I’ll be as much help as you’d like with food prep,” he offered. “I wouldn’t mind taking over the washing up.”

“You’re more help than everyone else,” Katara grumbled.

“Then it’s a good thing I’ll be around more often, right?”

She smiled. “I suppose so.”

He leant over to pick up the vegetables. She took a gentle hold of his wrist. “We’d need to buy another pot,” she shook her head, “and, with a pot of rice on as well, our stove wouldn’t manage that many things without fire maintenance becoming its own chore.”

He tilted his head. “I could probably help with that, you know. Dashing good looks aren’t the only things I have in common with my brother.”

She blinked, her hindbrain rushing to locate the nearest source of water before she could remind herself that this was _Li_ of all people. She hadn’t known him as such for as long as she would have liked, but they’d fought side-by-side so many times, and he was the first person in the group to actually _offer_ to help her with the chores. She knew intellectually that she trusted him with her life, but emotionally…

 _He didn’t even look that much like Zuko!_ His hair was different, his _scar_ was different and their demeanours were like night and day. Knowing that didn’t stop her from flinching when she spotted his yellow eyes in the candlelight at night.

She cleared her throat, didn’t dare to look at him, to see his expression if he’d noticed her discomfort. They were standing too close, she suddenly realised. She was still holding his wrist.

She’d gone too long without replying, allowing an awkward silence to fall over them. It would be up to her to sort it. Changing the subject would show too distinct a rejection, she knew, and she hoped that, since he was being open about it, that he would accept a few questions as a show of acceptance and interest.

“Does Aang know?” she asked the first thing that came to her mind, her tone slightly more accusatory than she’d intended.

He huffed, and she tried not to wince at her apparent misstep. “Not you too! Sokka’s already pestered me today about teaching him.”

Her eyes widened at the thought, her grip on his arm tightening, “Would you?”

He pulled himself out of her hold, his nose scrunching in an un-Li-like expression of upset. “I don’t know.” His usual rasp twisted itself into a growl in his frustration. “I don’t even know if I could. I’m not good enough for that. There’s a reason why I prefer swords.”

Katara frowned. “I understand. I wouldn’t want Aang to pick up bad habits by accident – not that I think you're a bad bender or teacher, just- well I trust your assessment of your own abilities so-”

“I’m a bad bender.” He cut her off.

“Okay,” she tried to soothe. “I understand that but… Aang’s had a bad experience with-” she paused, glanced around the bustling marketplace; lowered her voice- “With those sorts of tricks. Having a friend walk him through it would be good for him.”

He sneered, turned away so that his face was only angry and red (and Katara had to stop reaching for her water pouch every time he was less than perfectly kind and cordial), “Do you think I haven’t had my own bad experiences with those sorts of _tricks_?”

He blinked suddenly, looking down at his hands. He took a deep breath, features softening as he turned back into Li. “S-sorry,” he gave an apologetic half-smile, transforming his face, “I shouldn’t have snapped. That wasn’t fair of me.”

“I’m sorry, too,” she shook her head. “It wasn’t fair of me to overlook something like that.”

They both waited a moment for the other to speak.

Li swallowed. “So, stew?”

Katara nodded and reached for the carronions.

***

Toph considered herself a good judge of character. It wasn’t hard, not with how people around her consistently underestimated her; not with how she could always sense a lie and beat the truth out of anyone who denied her it.

She had a gut feeling that Sneaky was trustworthy, and she knew well enough from their friends how he’d helped them in the past – and it wasn’t like she’d ever met his evil brother so that he could colour her opinion of him.

Sure, Li was a liar, but only to protect his Uncle – she was on the fence about _him_ , never mind their own little tea party so many months ago, but she got why Li was so attached – and he was so ridiculously bad at it that it wasn’t even his fault that their friends had fallen for his acts.

She had a gut feeling and, according to all their friends, it was right… but she’d been listening to Sneaky's heart for the entire week, and still had no proof for herself that he was honest. Nothing he’d said was a lie, but there was something too careful about the way he’d crafted his words.

She knew, as a fellow noble, as a fellow newcomer to the group, that Li was bound to have his own secrets, and it wasn’t like being a Prince of the Fire Nation with a far-too-strong attachment to his crazy sadist brother was going to make things any easier. He’d have been raised on politics, and now that she’d tipped her hand to him…

Well, it didn’t matter. As much as it grated on her not to have some proof that he was as trustworthy as everyone else thought, she knew that Li was her friend and she knew that he was a good person. That had to be enough.

Besides, he did, make for some excellent entertainment.

She walked over to him as he finished scrubbing out the cooking pots.

“Thanks for dinner, Sneaky. Come with me, I wanna talk to you.” Toph pulled his arm out of the pot and dragged him to her room, not giving him a chance to respond. He threw the rag he’d been using into the pot across the room.

It was time for him to fulfil his side of their pact. It had been far too long since he’d pulled a lie on the others and she had a good one in mind.

He gestured in little flicks to a few corners of her bedroom, where she was certain her candlesticks were. She’d never bothered to use them herself but considering how cold it was outside, it must have been late enough for him to need the light.

The firebending was a surprise though. She grinned and adapted her plan – if she could bend the earth in dust and mud, she bet she could teach him to bend the heat in a cup of tea.

(Another thing he’d been keeping secret; another thing to have _reason_ to keep secret, especially if he’d been living alone in the Earth Kingdom for the last few years as Aang had said.)

“Firebending, Sneaky?”

His heartbeat flinched, even as the rest of him stayed steady. “I’ll put them out when I leave,” he promised, something careful in his tone.

She waved away his words with a smirk and a joke. “Worried I’ll forget about them?”

His shoulders slumped, ever so slightly. “Just didn’t want to waste your wax.”

“Not like I’m using it.”

“I’ll take them with me then. I have plenty of use for them.”

“What’cha willing to trade for them?”

“Whatever you asked me here for.”

“It’s not unthinkable that I just want to see you.”

His head tilted. “To _see_ me?”

She snorted. That was her fault, he could have that one.

“You were meant to be making things up for them.”

“It’s only been a week-”

She nodded. “A week too long. I met these spa ladies who know all about makeup and hair extensions. I imagine they could work as a disguise against you _seeing-people_ ,” she knew her sneer would not disguise her excited grin as she asked, “How long would it take for your brother Kuzon to get here?”

He froze for a second, then leaned forwards to hear her next words. She would have bet anything he was smiling.

***

Jet couldn’t stop staring.

Li was dressed in a soft leafy green, different to his usual blacks and browns, his short sleeves revealing muscled arms patterned with black bands of tattoos that Jet didn’t recognise. He stuck his tongue out as he fiddled with the measurements of tea, the long tresses of his hair falling into his face. He had new swords, strapped to his back instead of his hip.

Everyone else seemed just as shocked by Li’s new look; Toph grinned, Aang stood by his elbow, Katara refused to look at him, and Sokka refused to look away.

Behind him, he felt Smellerbee and Longshot rolling their eyes at him, and he braced himself for the lecture on leaving Li alone he would surely receive that afternoon. They had it down to a science these days. Sometimes it even worked… for a day or two.

Jet braced himself, pulled out a grin and dusted down his freshly polished armour. “Li! Love the new look.”

Li startled and looked up, one hand coming up and tucking his hair behind his ear. _Had he been to a spa?_ His scar was painted with red lilies and green vines; his one eyebrow arched more viciously than normal. His skin was so pale as to be almost white.

His painted lips pursed as Jet came in close enough to catch the earthy scene of his cologne. “Would you happen to be Jet?” His tone was flatter than usual, his rasp lacking that chest-tugging breathy quality.

Jet grinned wider to hide his wince. “Don’t tell me you’ve forgotten about me, sweet thing? I thought I showed you a good enough time.”

Li flicked his fingers; the tea he’d been tending leapt to his control, lashing quick enough to catch on Jet’s wheat even as he flinched back.

_Li was a waterbender now?_

“I heard you’d been pestering my brother,” Li tilted his head to accentuate his frown; his hair fell into his face only to be tucked away again. “He’s too polite to kill someone when they bother him, but trust me, I do _not_ have his patience.”

The water did not form into an icy shard as it would have done under Katara’s control, but that did not make it any less threatening when held inches from his throat. He could feel the scalding heat of the freshly boiled tea.

Jet looked at him again, took in the subtle differences in style and feature and demeanour to Li. “Brother?” he asked, just to make sure.

Not-Li gave a slow blink of exhausted annoyance. “My name is Kuzon. I am Li’s twin brother.”

Jet flushed under his collar. “T-twin? You're twins?”

Kuzon shrugged, seemingly oblivious to Jet’s glee. “Triplets, I should say.”

_(Stop thinking about it stop thinking about it stop thinking-)_

“Have you met the Blue Spirit?”

_(Aaaand you thought about it.)_

Kuzon sighed and flicked his water a bit closer, again and again in little swishes that pushed Jet towards the door. The underside of his chin must be red from the steam.

“You’re going to stay away from my brother.”

Jet just barely bit down on the wishful retort of, _“Want me all to yourself, do you?”_

“Hey, he’s not exactly been acting like he’s not interested,” Jet protested instead, which at least had the advantage of being true. “Let him tell me himself.”

“He’s tried, Jet,” came Smellerbee over his shoulder, traitorously. “Also you tried to kill him once.”

He didn’t dare twist to look at her with Kuzon still pushing him back, a table’s length from the tea shop’s door. He smirked regardless, “What’s romance without a little danger?”

Longshot stepped into his line of sight just long enough to tap his fingers against his stomach and empty pockets; to pointedly glance at the tea shop’s finery and their own patched clothes. _We have other dangers to think about, Jet_ , said the disappointed slant of his eyebrows.

Jet sighed. Longshot did have a point about them spending more time than they could afford in the upper ring. It would be a good idea to start looking for some more permanent work, and they couldn’t do it there.

Kuzon flicked the water away, having more than made his point already, and pushed himself breath-sharingly close into Jet’s space. Jet stood stock still as Kuzon leaned to speak into his ear, hissing a simple, _“If I see you here again, I’ll kill you,”_ before shoving him as hard as he could in the chest.

Jet just barely kept his footing. He wondered if any of Kuzon’s makeup would have rubbed off onto his cheek.

Smellerbee and Longshot each took one of his arms and hauled him out of the shop.

Jet wheezed, rubbed at his irritated throat. He thought of Kuzon’s cold eyes and remembered the chill from Katara freezing him so long ago. Tempting as it was to try to see the painted danger again, he wouldn’t be coming back until he was certain Kuzon was gone.

…well, maybe just for a peek.

***

Aang couldn’t believe Kuzon had only been in town for a day. Apparently, his visit had more to do with Uncle than with Li (even though he was sure they were supposed to be quite close?). Thinking about it, he wasn’t sure he’d even seen the two of them hanging out together. Li seemed pleased enough to have seen him though, he’d barely stopped smiling all day – he’d said the two of them didn’t have to spend much time together to click properly; that sometimes they feel like they’re the same person.

Aang didn’t agree much with that – he didn’t want to call Kuzon _mean_ , because he knew how much Li cared about him (but then again Li had been close with Zuko… and wasn’t that a horrible thing to think?).

It was a good job Li had good taste in friends – and they were so much closer now that he might actually start travelling with them when they move on from Ba Sing Se…

Li had said _no_ before. Aang scrunched his face as he tried to remember the details, but he was sure it was to do with weak bending and his scary father. Well, _Aang_ was scared of Li’s father, too, and he was still going to fight him, and he’d never known anyone so fearless and eager to help as Li.

They were closer now. Maybe it was time to ask again.

***

“Hey, Li?”

Zuko looked up from his meditation, letting the candles fall back into their natural rhythms. His firebending felt almost _stretched_ after spending so long lifting water through its heat, so much so that meditating had almost felt like bathing after a long day of sparring. It made sense when he thought about it properly – he wasn’t used to bearing weight at all when bending, and even that cupful of water had become heavy after a morning spent being drilled by Katara.

He’d been far too lucky that she’d accepted his excuse of needing the water hot due to his natural connection to fire – as much as it seemed like a joke to Toph, the last thing he needed was for anyone to question his identity. If they found out he’d told one lie, they would look a lot closer at everything else he’d said, and if Toph were to force him to speak plainly then he’d have no cover for his lies.

He couldn’t risk being found out, not when his and Uncle’s lives were in danger every day they spent in this damned walled city; not when he was finally getting closer to these people, slotting into their group as though there had always been a space left open for him (and it wasn’t entirely impossible that there _had_ ); not when…

 _Blast it!_ He didn’t want to lose these people when he hadn’t decided what to do yet. The war, his father, teaching Aang… everything the group had said about his father hit far too cleanly; everything he’d seen throughout the Earth Kingdom was starting to add up.

If he were exposed, he would have to commit to them or leave. He wasn’t sure which idea scared him more.

“Li?”

Zuko blinked. Aang was still there.

He smiled at his friend. “Sorry, I was lost in thought. What’s up?”

Aang shuffled his feet, not quite meeting his eyes. “You’re meditating.”

“I don’t mind being interrupted.”

Aang seemed to make a decision; sitting cross-legged next to Zuko and copying how he was posed. “You’re meditating in the fire way… I only know the air way.”

Zuko blinked slowly. “…I can teach you, if you’d like to join me,” he offered without thinking, snorting and looking at the candles, “I can manage this much at least.”

Aang beamed, scooching closer so their knees touched just slightly. “I’d like that.”

It was only as he drifted back into that meditative trance that he realised he was teaching the avatar firebending. His candle flared at the initial spark of fear, but the point of contact on his knee grounded him quickly. Teaching Aang felt natural so much so that he couldn’t even think of doing otherwise when he asked.

His first friend breathed next to him slowly, eyes shut and posture trusting.

The gentle warmth in Zuko’s chest had nothing to do with the fires they shared.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> kudos comment subscribe to the main series come find me on [tumblr](https://foiblepnoteworthy.tumblr.com/)  
> check out my [Jet-adopts-Zuko au](https://archiveofourown.org/series/1557868), my [Platonic soulmate au](https://archiveofourown.org/works/23725510/chapters/56973808) or any of my [Other fics](https://archiveofourown.org/users/FoiblePNoteworthy/pseuds/FoiblePNoteworthy/works)
> 
> (hello my darling regulars have you missed me I've missed you)
> 
> okay so yeah i know its been a while. for mental health reasons i wont get into writing was something of a distraction technique for me and now that im getting better im not using it so much. im not stopping, but finding a good balance is hard bruh
> 
> im going to try to write more regularly in the upcoming term. my plan is to try to update something every two weeks or so, which might be a one shot or an addition to any of my wips. most of my stuff here is atla so if you subscribe to me you're more likely to get your fill.


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